Sunday, September 6, 2009

Anaheim Hills

The land is dry right now. This started as a study in browns. The camera doesn't quite capture the colors but the most important part about my day was the wind had shifted the smoke from the fires and I had clear blue sky with a few white clouds and fresh smelling air. I got out for a few hours today and schlepped all my stuff up this hill and sat in the shade under a big old oak tree. Martin (a fellow Sketcherciser) said while he was painting he “heard two horses chewing the apples which lay around mmpf mmpf” so I thought I would listen to what I could hear sitting under this wonderful tree. Here is what I wrote on the flip page of my sketch book as I continued to paint….. birds chirping, buzzing of insects, leaves in the breeze, a hawk above, cars from the 91 freeway in the distance, an airplane overhead, dogs barking, a scratching sound from something in the underbrush, bees on the sage off to my side, tires screeching, horns, bang, oh well so much for the peaceful outback. I think there was an accident on the freeway. There is a lizard on a rock in front of me that didn’t make a noise; oh here come the emergency vehicles because I hear sirens.Funny the sounds don’t quite match the scene I painted.

4 comments:

OH HON! I JUST LOVE!!!! THIS! THE COLORS, YOUR WONDERFUL WRITING, LISTENING WITH YOU .. And yes, I could see the words and the scene together! I LOVE the softness of this, the quietness it 'feels' ... and the wonderful serenity it brings to me too ... I LOVE LOVE LOVE IT!

A lovely soft landscape, Pat - glad you had a break from the smoke! I also took note of sounds yesterday when I sketched... distant cars, hooters, a helicopter, the ducks and hadeda birds... and for a brief precious few minutes... silence!